hello.pinki Posted May 9, 2016 Share Posted May 9, 2016 I started this journey knowing I needed to make drastic changes to make a better life for myself and my boys. I'm a working mom with a 5 year old and 1-1/2 year old. My husband is a Firefighter with a crazy schedule and a second job so I am essentially a single mom with a demanding career. After having my second child, I found myself turning to alcohol and food to cope with the stress of both kids, my corporate management job and balancing it all. I was tired. all. the. time. I was crabby. all. the. time. I was starting to hate the person I was becoming, and knew something needed to change, but wasn't sure how since I struggled for the last 5 years with my weight since having my first son. I hated that I worked out with a personal trainer, worked out twice a day and rarely saw the scale move, always felt exhausted, and of course the guilt of having kids in daycare all day and daycare at the gym. In December I was Christmas shopping for a friend who likes to cook low carb, and I picked up a copy of Whole30, flipped through it and thought the food looked like something she'd like. They looked good to me too, and I grabbed a second copy for myself, not knowing what was truly inside those pages. A week later I started reading the book, and realized it was a "diet". OMG, how embarrassing. Is my friend going to be offended I got her a diet book? I kept reading, and thought the book was really making sense. I then checked It Starts with Food out from the local library. The words were calling to me, and I decided I was going to try this random diet thing. I hosted Christmas Dinner, so on December 26th I ate 2 meals a day Whole30, and 1 meal a day was leftovers...I can't throw away STUFFING!!!! On January 1st I started my Whole30. I had already lost 3 lbs from Christmas to Day 1. What??? I never experienced all of the exhaustion, crabbiness, or Tiger Blood that was promised in the Whole30 book. I immediately felt wide awake, like someone turned on a light for the first time and I could see clearly around me. I had boundless energy. My house was spotless because I didn't go to bed 3 minutes after I put the boys to bed. I started walking every night. My skin became bright and clear. Digestion issues I'd been struggling with disappeared. The first two to three weeks I really struggled mentally with wanting to have fast food, carbs, etc. but I argued with myself and won. I recall driving home from work and literally internally bickering with myself about stopping at Taco Bell for something fast and easy or just going home and making the compliant meal I had planned. After the end of my first whole30 I did the reintroduction and found out the hard way that grains were responsible for the terrible digestion issues I'd been experiencing. I'd lost 12lbs and 15.5" in 30 days. I joined a gym by my house and put away my mom guilt. I was doing this to better myself for my boys, and besides, they have a blast at the gym daycare. I also learned that even on crazy weeks where I couldn't get to the gym I was still losing inches. Then I decided to keep going. I am now 129 days straight on Whole30. I plan to stick to it until my BMI is in the healthy range and then live a paleo lifestyle with some whole30's here at there if I need to stay on track. I started this adventure at 201 lbs and a 36 BMI. I am currently at 160 lbs with a 27 BMI. I've lost 42" all over my body and I'm only 2 bmi away from being in the ideal BMI range. I've gone from a size 16 to a size 10. I am happy, awake, I don't need alcohol to cope when things get stressful, I go for a run instead. I am strong, I feel beautiful, and I'm the mom I've wanted to be to my boys and the wife I used to be. Dare I say I even feel sexy again? My boys now eat healthier and join me in walks, runs and bike rides and our family is much stronger than it used to be. I really can't thank Whole30 enough for showing me how to use food as fuel and not treats or comfort, nor can I thank you enough for saving me from myself. My destructive behavior was tearing me apart and I finally feel free and happy. It's truly been a life saving change and I'm grateful for that chance moment at Target when I thought some carb free recipes looked good. I am an evangelist, and I share with everyone how I got on this journey. I've influenced 5 other friends to do a whole30 and they experience similar results! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sboavida Posted May 9, 2016 Share Posted May 9, 2016 Wow! What a great story! This is absolutely wonderful and inspiring. I came here to post my NSV's - today is day 15 of my second whole30 - but what can I say now? I just realized I still have a long way to go, but I am so happy already with where I am right now. And you should be proud of yourself! You are giving your boys the greatest gift they could ever ask for: a healthy and happy mamma! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngann Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Wonderful story and very inspiring. Thank you for sharing it with us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasbred Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 You will inspire a lot of people. Congratulations! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoMoreCrunchyCravings Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 This was wonderful to read-- with similar body statistics for BMI/size, etc. I am really finding inspiration in your post. I'm one week in on my first w30 and really enjoying the meals that I'm creating as well as the way my body has been feeling (minus the cravings for junk I'm still battling some days). Thank you so much for sharing-- this was wonderful to read, and I can't wait to read more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hello.pinki Posted May 11, 2016 Author Share Posted May 11, 2016 This was wonderful to read-- with similar body statistics for BMI/size, etc. I am really finding inspiration in your post. I'm one week in on my first w30 and really enjoying the meals that I'm creating as well as the way my body has been feeling (minus the cravings for junk I'm still battling some days). Thank you so much for sharing-- this was wonderful to read, and I can't wait to read more! Good luck!!! You can do it - the internal mental battles are the toughest, and they don't always go away. Today at work there were muffins and cookies in a meeting all morning and I fought with myself all morning to not be tempted. Whole30 meals really are so delicious they make the program so much easier to stick to than other programs. I tell people how rarely I eat salads and they are surprised! Cj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdawson Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 This is definitely inspiring, especially that you have gone so many days. I'm going to need many days also to get my health back, but its coming slowly but surely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Italodude Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 BEYOND inspiring. The part that struck really important to me was : "I immediately felt wide awake, like someone turned on a light for the first time and I could see clearly around me" I want that back in my life..thx for giving me hope back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hello.pinki Posted June 6, 2016 Author Share Posted June 6, 2016 It's been a month since my original post, and I'm currently at -43lbs, -45.65" and I'm 1 BMI point (are they called points?) away from being in the healthy range!!! WOOOO Happy Dance! I'm officially smaller than I was when I got married 6 years ago, pre-kids. Pretty amazing considering I'm creeping up on 40. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyDFisher Posted June 7, 2016 Share Posted June 7, 2016 Love this post. Such an inspiration. Good job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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